EAGLES MOVE UP FOR MACLIN

Jeff McLane and Zach Berman

The Eagles made a trade with the Cleveland Browns for a wide receiver after all, moving up two spots in order to select Missouri's Jeremy Maclin.

In order to get Maclin with the 19th pick, the Eagles dealt their first-round pick and a sixth-round selection, the 195th pick overall. He is just the second receiver the Eagles have taken in the first round during coach Andy Reid's tenure. The other was Freddie Mitchell in 2001.

Reid said the Eagles didn't expect Maclin to be available when it was their turn to make a pick.

"Actually, we thought he was going to go quite a little bit higher than he did," Reid said. "This was not who we had targeted. He just happened to be one of those guys who fell a little bit and he kind of fell into our lap there."

Maclin, 20, set a single-season school record for receptions with 102 and yards with 1,260. He also scored 13 touchdowns. In addition to his ability as a receiver, Maclin will likely take over as the Eagles' kick returner, a role he did extremely well at Missouri. His 1,346 kick return yards as a freshman were two shy of an NCAA record.

"I just love doing it," Maclin said when asked about returning kicks. "I put a lot of work and film study into it in order to be successful."

Maclin, who declared for the draft after just two seasons at Missouri, was just the third player in NCAA history to average more than 200 all-purpose yards per game.